A cost-effective, easy-to-use device for transporting heavy goods into and out of cars.
The everyday task of loading or unloading a car boot can be complicated, painful even impossible if you have a back injury, back pain, are in a wheelchair, pregnant or just frail or elderly. Car boots are open flexible spaces that accommodate all manner of things but they have nothing to assist you as you reach over, bend awkwardly and lift out the item or attempt to load the car.
The design team looked at existing retrofitted products from engineered cranes to inflatable mattresses that lift loads above the sill level. All were impractical in terms of cost and effectiveness for the range of situations they needed to address and the different car types each with their own boot configuration.
Their solution was Loadall a device encased in a metal box structure with a moving platform and integrated handle. The platform can adjust to different boot heights and can be slid easily in and out beyond the sill allowing wheelchair users to transfer loads easily. An object can be placed on this platform and the hinged cover drawn over it and secured to the handle to keep it in place as it is slid back into the boot. In this way loads can be transferred in and out of the boot space, eliminating the need to bend, place or lift. Unlike a fixed piece of equipment, Loadall can be removed from the boot when necessary or remain as a permanent fixture secured by a simple strap to the eyelet at the back of the boot allowing drivers to continue to use the car with which they are familiar.
Six disabled and older drivers with a range of disabilities and differing needs.
Creactive set themselves an ambitious brief based on a very real problem and responded to it with impeccable in-depth research, which was well communicated in their presentation. They highlighted the real issue of the poor design of cars and came up with a solution that was well-engineered, truly inclusive and the result of an impressive level of design work.
